With reportedly 3 million data centres across the globe, these behemoth powerhouses (pun intended) rose to prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Used for collection and processing of large sums of information, data centres are a central location for conducting IT operation.

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Paramount for global networking and industrial stability, below is a list of five of the biggest data centres from across the globe that are major players in the field of information technology.

China Telecom Data Centre – China

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The largest data centre in the world, the China Telecom Data Centre boasts an area coverage of 10.7 million square feet. Amongst its wide array of facilities, the data centre contains a cloud computing data centre, call centres, warehouse, offices, and living quarters for staff. The construction cost of the structure is estimated at about $3 billion, making it the world’s most expensive data centre.

Its location in Hohhot, China, is easily the most strategic and ideal. With an altitude of 1050 metres and a temperature of 6°C, the data centre is privy to air cooling at no cost for eight months annually.

Switch SuperNAP  – United States

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Located in Las Vegas, Nevada, Switch SuperNAP data centre is Switch’s first venture and covers 3.5 million square feet. With plans of expansion doing rounds, the extension will take place between 2020 and 2025. SuperNAP delivers data at an impressive speed of just seven milliseconds between Reno to Las Vegas, providing 50 million individuals within the vicinity data access in merely 14 milliseconds.

Built in 2001, the centralized facility shares its grounds with more than 183 networks and regulates temperature using continuous power and cooling substructure of seven-inch thick steel-reinforced concrete external panels.

Kolos Data Centre – Norway

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Kolos data centre is the largest facility of its kind in Europe. Located in a tiny village of Ballangen, Norway, the four storey centre spans 6.5 million square feet. Another instance of strategic location, Kolos is powered by 100% renewable energy owing largely to Norway’s abundance of hydroelectric infrastructure. This helps the centre cut 60% of its energy cost.

A US-Norwegian company, Kolos wishes to build a hyper-scale data centre with a capacity to consume 1000 megawatts of power by 2027.

Next Generation Data – United Kingdom

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Constructed in 1998, the Next Generation Data centre is located in Newport, South of Wales, UK. Initially built to house LG semiconductor plant, it covers an area of 750,000 square feet.

As of 2010, BT and Logica are Next Generation Data’s two chief consumers. Whilst BT installed server racks to expand IT and communication services, Logica aids in managing IT requirements of its government clientele.

The three storey facility includes 19,000 server cabinets and is equipped to hold private data centre pods. It also contains a shell space for data centre container installations.

Tulip Data Centre – India

India’s largest data centre, Tulip data centre spans about 1 million square feet and is located in Bangalore, India. Built in 2012, the facility has 12,000 server racks, supported by 100 megawatts of power each. Tulip’s four towers, established in association with IBM, has the ability to provide amenities to over 2000 locations across the country. Designed in compliance with the Seismic Zone specifications, Tulip data centre’s architecture is tailored for service and cost efficiency.